The Mike Quirke Podcast

This episode takes you inside an inter‑county Gaelic football training camp, describing a typical day from morning flexibility and tactical meetings to on‑pitch sessions, recovery facilities and evening psychology work. It explains how focused sessions, top‑class recovery and uninterrupted time together help teams hone tactics, build cohesion and prepare physically and mentally for the championshi...

This is a quick hitter of an episode; a short discussion on whether or not every child should receive equal playing time in youth sports - weighing development and retention against competition and winning. This episode invites listeners - coaches, parents, and players - to share their views on when equal playing time should end and competitive selection should begin, asking for specific ages and...

In this heartfelt and inspiring episode, I have a conversation with Danny O'Sullivan from Tralee, County Kerry. Danny shares the profoundly emotional experience of losing his wife, Alison, at just 37 years of age to a sudden and aggressive form of cancer just 10 weeks after diagnosis. Despite the heartbreak, Danny has channeled his energy into organising a significant charity cycle from Malin to M...

In this insightful episode, we delve into the world of sports coaching with Nick Walsh, a former Gaelic football player turned AFL high-performance expert. We explore the unique challenges athletes face when transitioning from Gaelic games to Australian Rules Football and discuss the importance of mental health support for both players and coaches. Nick shares his experiences in developing high-pe...

Listen in to this insightful episode as we delve deep into the world of coaching with Dr. Ed Coughlan, an expert in skill acquisition. Discover how to create the optimal environment for players to develop their skills effectively, beyond the traditional drills. Dr. Coughlan shares his expertise on the importance of practicing skills in context, under pressure, and with decision-making components t...

Welcome to an engaging episode where we delve into the psychological intricacies of coaching youth in sports. After a brief hiatus, we're back to explore how parents and coaches can create a nurturing environment for young athletes. Joining us is Dr. Ciara Losty, a lecturer in Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology. Dr. Losty shares valuable insights from her experience of working with Team Ireland...

In this thought-provoking first episode of 2025, we delve into the current state of physical education (PE) in Irish national schools, highlighting the challenges and opportunities for improvement. Host Mike engages in a compelling discussion with Stephen and Peter Lavin, the passionate educators behind Game Sense Coaching, renowned for their contributions to coaching. Throughout the episode, we e...

In this episode, I'm joined by Des Ryan, a renowned expert in youth athletic development and coaching, with a career spanning elite roles at Arsenal, Irish Rugby, and now as Director of Sport and Physical Activity at the University of Galway. Des shares his wealth of knowledge on developing young athletes, fostering effective coaching practices, and navigating relationships between coaches, parent...

Kerry's Tommy Walsh is both an All Ireland winner and former professional Aussie rules player with both St Kilda and the Sydney Swans. Following commentary by Kerry GAA county chairman Patrick O'Sullivan recently about the need for the GAA to become more proactive about putting structures in place to help keep more of our young players at home, Tommy was generous enough to share his experiences of...

 Jason McGahan is the high-performance manager with Kerry GAA, and shares his journey from playing football in Armagh to managing performance for one of Ireland's top GAA counties. He provides valuable insights into building high-performance structures within sports teams, illustrating how clubs can improve their operations without hefty financial investments. In a compelling discussion, the conve...

Join us in this episode as we delve into the world of coaching with Declan Quill, former joint manager of the Kerry Ladies football team. Hear inspiring stories and insights from Quill on how he and his team transformed the coaching approach, leading the Kerry Ladies to All-Ireland glory. Discover the challenges, triumphs, and lessons learned along the way. Whether you're a coach, parent, or sport...

In this episode, I’m thrilled to introduce Tony Holler, a Hall of Fame sprint coach from the United States and the mind behind the revolutionary “Feed the Cats” training philosophy. Known for challenging traditional approaches to speed training, Tony has transformed the way coaches think about developing sprint performance. Today, he’ll share his insights on prioritizing speed, avoiding burnout, a...

In this insightful episode, we delve deep into the world of coaching with the legendary Wayne Goldsmith. A highly respected Australian coach, Wayne has spent over 30 years revolutionising sports coaching across various disciplines, including swimming, rugby, triathlon, and cricket. Join us as Wayne shares his innovative approach to coaching, focusing on athlete development, high performance, and y...

Welcome to Season 4 of the Mike Quirke Podcast, where we dive deeper into the realms of sports coaching, performance, and the psychology of being a sports parent and plenty more. In this episode, we explore an inspiring story of change and resilience. Meet Louise Quill, a remarkable woman from Tralee, County Kerry, recently named Kerry Person of the Year. Her journey began with a vision to create...

In this week's episode, the last of the series, I wanted to provide a recap of some of the brilliant messages shared by all the various guests along the way. I'd like to say a sincere thanks to all of those people who have come on and shared their vast knowledge with us and I'd also like to thank all of you that have listened, shared, and contributed to the fundraiser along the way. I want to say...

In this week's episode, I got the opportunity to pick the brains of Dr Mark O'Sullivan, originally from Cork, the 'accidental' academic is now an associate professor of football at the Norwegian School of Sports Science and formerly head of youth development at AIK Stockholm who specialises in skill acquisition, coaching, as well as coach and youth development. Mark is regarded as being at the cut...

John McGrath is a former GAA player, an international rower, a circus strong man, a world record holder and so on... The 6'6" Irish man lives in Paarl, South Africa and has earned renown as a strength and conditioning coach working with rugby players, the South African women’s tug-of-war team, and, most famously, Olympic silver medal and World Athletics Championship gold medal long jumper, Luvo Ma...

John O'Connor is this week's guest on the podcast - owner of Target Nutrition and head performance nutritionist with the Kerry senior football team.  This episode is slightly different to previous efforts, where we talk all things food and nutrition information and misinformation. As parents, how do we fuel our young sports mad children? As coaches, how do help kids develop positive long-term asso...

I want to say a big thank you to PST Sport for their continued support as title sponsor for this project. Go to pstsport.com for world class delivery of all your artificial grass pitch needs. Niall O'Mahony is this weeks guest - a lecturer and PhD candidate working in the health and leisure department of MTU Kerry campus who is currently coaching the Kerry minor football team. Previously he would...

I want to say a big thank you to PST Sport for their continued support as title sponsor for this project. Go to pstsport.com for world class delivery of all your artificial grass pitch needs. Stephen Lavin played senior inter-county football for Limerick for the best part of 13 years. Having finished playing several years ago, the school principal now finds himself as the head of the Limerick GAA...

I want to say a big thank you to PST Sport for their continued support as title sponsor for this project. Go to pstsport.com for world class delivery of all your artificial grass pitch needs. This week's guest is Liam McHale is a household name throughout Ireland for his contribution and prowess both on the football field and particularly the hardwood. Assisted by his brothers Sean and Anthony, br...

I want to say a big thank you to PST Sport for their continued support as title sponsor for this project. Go to pstsport.com for world class delivery of all your artificial grass pitch needs. This week's guest was David Baird who has coached youth football for over 15 years and is currently a UEFA A Licence and UEFA Elite Youth A Licence candidate. He currently works as a Coach Educator and Footba...

I want to say a big thank you to PST Sport for their continued support as title sponsor for this project. Go to pstsport.com for world class delivery of all your artificial grass pitch needs. Rob Mulcahy is a native of Kerry but has been the head of athlete development with Clare GAA for nearly 7 years. Initially, he worked under long-serving Clare senior football manager Colm Collins as a strengt...

Mick Bohan has travelled a fairly unique coaching journey from being a PE teacher for over 33 years to becoming a skills coach with Dublin under Jim Gavin before working with Colm Collins in Clare, winning Sigerson cups with DCU and eventually leading the Dublin ladies football team to multiple All Ireland senior titles as manager. He shares his thoughts here on coaching, on developing skills, the...

    It's great to be putting out a third series of the coaching podcast and I'm delighted to link up with the Lily Daly Foundation to help raise much-needed funds for the heart centre in Crumlin's childrens hospital as well as Ronald McDonald house. Here, I chat with Lily's mom Caroline about her heartbreaking story and the promise she made to her daughter. The Lily Daly Foundation The Lily Daly F...